Monday, 23 December 2013

Review of the Year, 2013

Does
anyone else remember watching the Clive James' Review of the Year show on New
Year's Eves in days gone by?

It
was essential viewing in our house - watched on the night when I was too young
to go out partying and then recorded on the trusty VHS video when I was old
enough to head out 'into town'(and watched the next day whilst drinking tea and
nursing a sore head!).

Dear
old Clive - accompanied on a Casio-style keyboard by his faithful singing sidekick
Margarita Pracatan - took a humorous look back at the events of the year just
passed.

So,
if you'll humour me, and kind of in honour of Clive, I'd like to do my own
Review of the Year, based on the columns I've written in 2013, which sometimes
look at the quirkier side of life in our corner of Northamptonshire.

January - the Brookfield
Plantation under threat.I wrote about the
possible destruction of a large area of established trees in order to build a
'resource recovery park'.I wish I could
give you all an update on this, but it's still rumbling on.Corby Council are due to make a decision
early in 2014 I believe.Sadly no news on
where the deer and other wildlife will go if the trees are destroyed though.

February - Richard III discovered under a car park
in Leicester.Poor chap is still
awaiting a re-burial due to a legal challenge.I did muse that as he was born in Northamptonshire and was a Roman
Catholic, perhaps Northampton Cathedral was an appropriate resting place.Unsurprisingly, nobody went with this idea.Also, Pope Benedict resigned much to
everybody's surprise.

March - a photo of Chalky the deer appeared in the
Northants Telegraph, verifying that the white stag of Brookfield Plantation
exists!We were also told by fashion
magazines to wear all white for the summer - I was sceptical at this advice and
expressed that I had no desire to dress like John Travolta in Saturday Night
Fever.

April - Brookfield
Plantation March
took place in Corby town centre, about 300 people attended, and it made the BBC
Regional News that evening.No, I didn't
see myself in any of the photos or on the TV, but I was there, proudly wearing
my 'Save Chalky' t-shirt!

May - Eurovision.I admitted to you all that I'm a fan of
Bonnie Tyler.I still think it's a shame
she didn't win - she's fab and the song was good.A victim of tactical voting, methinks.Why do we bother entering Eurovision?

June - British wildlife
under threat
from over-development.We still need to
save the bees!

July - Gangnam-style MPs.Keith Vaz, in his infinite wisdom, decided to
challenge the other MPs representing the finalists for City of Culture to a
dance-off.Wrong on so many levels.Leicester lost, Hull won.

August - Prince George
arrives.The world breathed a sigh of relief and Kay
Burley went for 36 hours without a comfort break.

September - The Seven
Wonders of Northamptonshire.Included,
controversially, the Corby Cube which, at the time, required another £600,000
to fix what is essentially a flat roof.

October - I detailed why I hate Bonfire Night.Yes, I'm aware it should be on 5th November,
but this year it started mid-October and ended mid-November!Also the lovely Fran Quinn won Great British
Bake-Off, news which cheered me, nearby Market Harborough, and possibly the nation.

November - I imparted the sad news
that the 'laminated book of dreams' in
Argos was to be scrapped and replaced by tablet computers.Also, Children in Need and the response to
the Philippines appeal restored my faith in human nature, which had taken a
battering from the over-commercialization of Christmas and adverts with feature-film
budgets bombarding me on a daily basis.

December - The X-Factor and my favourite Christmas song.I still think Sam Bailey is amazing - and a worthy winner, her version
of 'The Power of Love' is better than the original - and I listen to The Pogues
and Kirsty MacColl every year and probably always will.

That's
Helen Bach's Review of the Year.Many thanks
for reading and a Happy 2014 to you all!